I love asparagus in all shapes and forms. I would even venture to say it’s my favorite vegetable—or at least one of them. My husband was never a fan, until the day I made these addictive specimens. He even requested them for his birthday this year!
A member of the lily family, asparagus is related to onions, garlic, and leeks, and is one of the oldest recorded vegetables. An excellent source of vitamin K, plus rich in folates and B vitamins, the shoots do double-duty, in my opinion, as a “negative-calorie food,” meaning that you expend more energy chewing than you get from the vegetable itself. What better reason to make the tender spears more delectable than by dressing them in a fine veil of salty, cured meat!
Ingredients
Serves 3–4
1 lb. asparagus spears
8 paper-thin slices of prosciutto
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Preparation
1. Prepare asparagus shoots by cutting or breaking woody ends from spears, keeping them roughly the same length. Peel bottom third of each spear with a vegetable peeler, if desired.
2. Place asparagus in a steamer basket in a medium-sized pot. Cover, and bring to a boil. Steam spears for 1–2 minutes, until partially cooked. Drain, then drop in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process.
3. Gather a small bundle of spears, 3–5 or so per bunch, depending on their thickness. Wrap bundle in a piece of prosciutto, pressing end gently to seal. Repeat with remaining asparagus. Drizzle bundles lightly with olive oil, and season with a little salt and a liberal dose of freshly cracked pepper.
4. Preheat the grill to high, or you may preheat your oven broiler to high. Grill or broil the bundles until browned on all sides and asparagus is tender, about 2–3 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
To choose your organically grown and fresh ingredients wisely, use the following criteria:
·chemical- and hormone-free meat
·wild-caught fish
·pastured-raised, organic eggs
·whole, unrefined grains
·virgin, unrefined, first-press organic oils
·whole-food, unrefined sweeteners
·pure, clean, spring water
·sea salt
·raw and/or cultured milk and cream products
